The description of friction of silicon MEMS with surface roughness: virtues and limitations of a stochastic Prandtl–Tomlinson model and the simulation of vibration-induced friction reduction

• W. Merlijn van Spengen,
• Viviane Turq and
• Joost W. M. Frenken

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2010, 1, 163–171, doi:10.3762/bjnano.1.20

• ] using a dedicated contact mechanics model. This paper first reviews typical MEMS friction measurements with our fully MEMS-based tribometer, showing the irregular, but repeatable, stick-slip motion of MEMS surfaces in contact. Then we extend the common Prandtl–Tomlinson model with a stochastic component